


Reporting for duty

by ArtemisFigeuro



Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: F/M, Gen, Slow Burn, law and order svu
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-13
Updated: 2019-07-15
Packaged: 2020-06-27 06:29:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19785148
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArtemisFigeuro/pseuds/ArtemisFigeuro
Summary: A series of rapes brings (y/n) a bright and young journalist together with the 16th precinct.





	1. Chapter 1

The sound of peppy news readers filtered through apartment 174 much to (y/n)'s chagrin. She groaned lifting her head from it's resting place at her table for two, blinking her bleary, sleep laden eyes. Another late night, filtering through countless pages of a dumb fluff piece she'd been ordered to write had presumably bored her into falling asleep where she sat, she thought. She noted the sharp crick in her neck from her impromptu nap and groaned again.  
'In other news, police are still on the hunt for a serial rapist, the following report contains sensitive details, viewer discretion is advised.' At this she perked up a little, falling out of her chair and walking towards the TV set on the other side of the room, inching the volume up. The so-called central Park rapist had been haunting the city for weeks now, splashed all over the news as the perpetrator evaded being caught. (Y/n) sighed, running a hand through her mussed hair as it was reported another victim had been found; a student who'd chanced a shortcut through the park had been brutally raped and subsequently died from the injuries... She felt a pang of sadness at the loss of such a young life and fear at the sudden escalation of the rapist. No doubt the guys at the office would be having a field day with this, a hot story like that always generated a buzz in the publication world. Talking of the guys at the office...   
'SHIT' (Y/n) grabbed her cell checking the time, she was late. Again.   
***  
Her heels clacked against the tile flooring of the office, she'd barely had time to shower and make herself look presentable, having to settle for a worse for wear Starbucks muffin to go for breakfast. She glanced up at the ornate clock that watched over those who came and went and muttered a few 'Hail Mary's'.  
'Late again (y/l/n)' a stocky, well dressed man sidled up to her. Carter, her boss.   
'I'm so so sorry.' She stammered, 'I was working late reading up on that report you asked me to go through, I must've slept in' (Y/n) cursed herself internally, never one for mornings but especially so since landing a 9-5 at the news company.   
'Must've? Well you either did or you didn't, which one is it?' Carter frowned slightly, leaving (Y/n) ashen faced and glued to the spot in mute terror. Her boss then bellowed with laughter clapping her so hard on the back that she had to steady herself should she fall flat on her face, embarrassing herself even more. 'I'm just joking with ya' She smiled nervously, forcing out a prim giggle. 'It's a good job I ran into you actually, I have a job for you' (Y/n) met his gaze as they made their way into the elevator.  
'What's that?'   
'There's another police conference today, 'bout that Central Park rapist. They're doing a fresh appeal after that kiddo died, real sad.' He paused, shaking his head, 'Well anyway since Kevin is out sick I need someone to go down there and report on it. I figured you could take time out of whatever story it is you're doing.' (Y/n) felt a bubble of excitement in the pit of her stomach, this would be her first serious piece of journalism in her entire four months working for the paper. Being the new girl had left her with a pile of dull filler articles about anything from mischievous cats to an interior change at the local wine and dine. Not quite believing what she was hearing she asked,   
'Why not send one of the other guys to do it?' Carted huffed, a small smile on his lips.   
'They're all tied up in their own stuff, take the chance darlin, unless you wanna keep writing about useless garbage?' She winced at that.  
'I'll do it.' Carter nodded in approval.  
'Well you better get goin, conference starts at 11.'   
***  
The Manhattan special victims unit was already buzzing with life despite the early hour. Police roamed in and out of the lobby, every detectives desk was a cluttered mess as some typed away at computers and others conversed tersely. The serial they'd been chasing for weeks had struck again and this time the victim had died, forcing even more pressure onto the team to figure the case out. At that moment, Lieutenant Olivia Benson walked through the precinct, closely followed by two well dressed men, one was tall with a no nonsense look on his face, the detectives visibly bristling in his presence - William Dodds. The other man was more familiar though, ADA Rafael Barba; clinging to a takeout cup of coffee like his life depended on it.   
'What's the 411 on the victim?' Dodds asked the group of detectives. At that a lanky, blue eyed man stepped forward.  
'Felicia Walker, 20, she was a student from Hudson - decided to take a shortcut through Central Park and was last seen by friends at around 8pm last night' he pointed at photos hung up on a white board, gory crime scene photos. 'She was found this mornin by an elderly dog walker, already dead.'   
'Thanks Carisi' Benson nodded, 'Do we have a time of death?'   
'I just got off the phone with the ME, she reckons she passed not long after she was last seen, her head was caved in with a rock.' a petite blonde with a Georgia accent, Amanda Rollins, piped up.  
'Right' Dodds muttered, 'So this wasn't a fluke, he's escalating.' - 'Seems that way.' Rollins affirmed. Rafael stayed quiet as he processed the information, he never failed to be disturbed by the cases SVU paraded to him. He was brought out of his reverie by Benson ushering him and chief Dodds into her office.   
'There's going to be another conference.' Dodds spoke immediately, 'The public are tense, the papers are losing their minds, people want answers-'  
'Rest assured my team and I are working night and day to find this guy' Olivia interjected.  
'That may be Sergeant, but the fact is you haven't find him yet and hes escalating, that being said I need both of you to turn up and make that sentiment known. Conference starts at 11, figure out what you're going to say.' And with that he sauntered out of the room. Olivia fell back into her chair, closing her eyes momentarily.   
'We'll find this guy' Rafael finally spoke, trying to be as sympathetic as possible, mentally preparing himself to deal with the media circus that was about to ensue.


	2. Chapter 2

(Y/n) arrived twenty minutes early, nervous energy rippling through her. A conference was a big deal and for Carter to send her in place of one of her more experienced coworkers on such a high profile case meant that there was no room for mistakes. She'd been thrown in the deep end, that's for sure. Other reporters and plenty of official looking people milled about the lobby where she stood, waiting, with her second cup of coffee in hand. She thought about the case, racking her brains for potent and interesting questions and the information that the people would want. What exactly were the police doing to prevent these rapes from happening? Where was the police presence? Sure law enforcement had a spotty history with managing sexual assault, but surely a case like this would be taken more seriously? (Y/n) felt troubled, lamenting on times she'd skipped through the park for convenience and how realistically she could have been assaulted any of those times.   
Her train of thought was disrupted then by the crowd descending on doors just across the room, 'Time to get this show on the road' she muttered to herself, draining her coffee and joining the throng of suits.   
***  
The room was cramped and hot, not helped by the mass of journalists, police and miscellaneous 'important' people crammed in. ADA Rafael Barba stood off to the side waiting for the conference to begin. He typically hated these things. Journalists were akin to vultures in his mind, always searching for a story and often complicating cases with their witty headlines and exaggerated 'facts'. No doubt they could be useful, he'd give them that but for the most part he tried to steer clear and failed to do so miserably. They'd wait on the cold stone steps of the courthouse, or lurk at a Gala, always waiting, always prying for a story, lingering like a bad smell. The clock ticked closer to 11am, he nodded to Olivia and they made their way onto the low stage, Chief Dodds joined them, standing behind the podium in the centre. Cameras flashed and popped, blinding them momentarily and then Dodds began to address the crowd.   
***  
(Y/n) sat as close to the front as she possibly could, legs crossed, notepad and pen in hand. Her eyes scanned the stage quickly, Chief William Dodds was talking, repeating facts she and probably every other person in the room already knew. Next to Dodds was a brunette woman in a blazer, her shield was hooked onto the waistband of her pants. (Y/n) recognised her vaguely, Olivia Benson, a detective with the 16th precinct and next to her was a man she had seen many times on tv. Rafael Barba was more handsome in person she mused, taking in his grey three piece and sparkling green eyes (which seemed to catch hers momentarily) before quickly drawing her attention back to the Chief. She was here to do a job she chastised herself, not indulge herself.   
'Any questions?' Dodds asked the room at large and at that hands flew up and the room filled with a quiet roar of chattering and chair shuffling and papers being turned. One by one writers from other papers and news firms asked their questions; 'What are the police doing to tackle this?' 'What advice do you have for people who enter the park regularly?' 'Do you have any leads or suspects?' 'How far do you think this will escalate?' (Y/n) listened to all of this, noting down answers before raising her own hand. Dodds pointed her way.   
***   
Barba internally winced at the barrage of questions. He knew it was going to be bad, it had been weeks and they still hadn't caught this monster and now a girl had died. There was heavy tension in the room as each question was asked and subsequently answered. At that moment a woman in the front row raised her hand. He'd noticed her before, noting how out of place she looked, notepad gently perched upon her knee. She'd caught his eye for a few seconds before he turned away, not wanting to be caught staring. But now he turned his full attention to her again. Dodds indicated her to ask her question.   
'I have no doubt that the special victims unit are taking this case seriously,' She began, 'But how seriously are the police at large handling it, is it true that the first victim was turned away from her local precinct after being assaulted?' Dodds paled. 'And surely, in light of how seriously things are progressing, the police could spare extra uniforms to prevent more women being victimised? Has police ignorance been the catalyst for this case all along?' The room had gone deathly silent by the time she'd finished and for a moment the woman looked unsure of herself. She pressed her lips together, sitting up straighter in her chair. And for the first time that morning Barba smiled. For what it was worth, this girl, whoever she was had hit the nail on the head. The special victims unit routinely dealt with the incompetence of the police and she was right. Had they taken this more seriously perhaps they wouldn't be where they were now. Dodds cleared his throat.  
'Of course, the NYPD is taking this case very seriously-' He was cut off by the woman speaking again,   
'But is it too little too late? Will the NYPD admit to it's shortcomings when it comes to rape cases?' At this Dodds stuttered out a lame answer that Barba didn't even listen to. He wondered who this unfamiliar journalist was. He'd never seen her before, not at any galas or at the courthouse, perhaps she was new on the scene? All's he knew was that his distaste for reporters could perhaps be curbed in this case, he wanted badly to know her name as he watched her quirk an eyebrow in dissatisfaction at the answer to her questions. But once the conference was over she seemed to disappear into thin air, leaving him only with the satisfaction of making Chief William Dodds squirm like a scolded child.


End file.
